Quest Diagnostics, Royalty Pharma deal

Royalty Pharma acquired from diagnostic company Quest Diagnostics the rights to royalties for cancer compound ibrutinib for $485 million in cash. Quest said the deal is in line with its strategy announced last year to refocus on its core diagnostic information services business. Quest gained the ibrutinib royalty rights through its 2011 acquisition of Celera Corp. for $670.8 million or about $344 million net of cash. Pharmacyclics Inc. (NASDAQ:PCYC, Sunnyvale, Calif.) acquired ibrutinib from Celera in 2006 (see BioCentury, April 17, 2006 & May 23, 2011).

Quest retains royalty rights to other Celera assets, as well as musculoskeletal drug odanacatib, which it acquired through a 1996 deal with Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK, Whitehouse Station, N.J.) to develop cathepsin K inhibitors. Earlier this year, Merck said it expects to submit regulatory applications next year for the cathepsin K inhibitor to treat osteoporosis (see BioCentury, Feb. 4). ...